Pig Beach

We are anchored in sight of Pig Beach, a very popular spot in this area. Several pigs live on the island, and boaters and tourists come to the beach to feed them. The pigs will even swim out to the boats for food (swimming pigs, maybe they are circus escapees)!

It is unknown how the pigs originally came to live on Big Major Cay. They aren’t native to the area, and the island itself is uninhabited. Stories suggest that the pigs were either dropped off by a group of sailors who wanted to come back and cook them (which was popular), or that there was a nearby shipwreck and the pigs swam to safety. Either way, they are firmly rooted here now.

I’ve read that approximately 20 pigs and piglets live on Big Major Cay. They thrive partly because the island is lucky enough to have three freshwater springs, and partly from all of the feeding they receive from local Bahamians and tourists.

On our first day here, we went over to the beach. I am not keen on being up close and personal with the pigs, as some are pretty sizable (flashbacks of being bum-rushed at petting zoos also come to mind), so we stayed in the boat. There were three or four pigs on the beach, and one swam out to us. It’s a bit freaky for a big pig to swim up to you, when your boat is low in the water. We stayed for a few minutes, took a few photos and left.

Since we are so close to the beach, I check on the feeding action daily. Dingys of all sizes stop to feed the pigs throughout the day, and there are also smaller tour boats that stop a few times a week; the pigs make out well. After viewing daily feedings through my binoculars, I decided that I’d like to do another “drive by.”….again, in the boat (still not wanting to be up close and personal).

On our second visit, there were many more pigs, and we again had a swim up welcome.

The larger, spotted pigs are the biggest swimmers, while the white ones, and the smallest speckled guy only seem to venture in occasionally. We got lucky, and had multiple swimmers come to the boat, for my delicious Ritz crackers (it’s all I was willing to share).

We also got some great video!

So there you have it, Pig Beach. I can check it off my bucket list (will have to add it first)! Here are many more pig pictures.